Comparing Sequencing Platforms Using the Same Tumor Tissue

Foundation Medicine (Cambridge, MA) and Guardant Health (Redwood City, CA) both have genomic sequencing platforms for genomic cancer. Foundation analyzes 343 genes from tissue biopsies; Guardant, 70, from DNA residues in blood. You might suspect that their results would be relatively similar for the same patient, but researchers at the University of Washington found almost inexplicable variations among nine patients. One patient showed no genetic alterations with either test. Two had no matched results at all. And, while 36 drugs altogether were indicated in one or the other test, both tests only agreed for nine drugs. MORE